Chapter 30
The knocking continued before71Please respect copyright.PENANAeKaFufIvOq
Vander got off the bed, slowly walking over. He couldn’t smell much through the71Please respect copyright.PENANA57LLKp8jPQ
heavy door, but there was enough to know that both Right and Left were standing71Please respect copyright.PENANAQubIaXgEhB
there. He wasn’t sure what they wanted. It was still many hours away until he71Please respect copyright.PENANA0XCDFHbWED
had to get ready for his bout with whoever Ross had picked, so they must want71Please respect copyright.PENANAL54ne3DWF3
something else. Shea jumped down from the bed to join him. Her ears were71Please respect copyright.PENANA9UZCErACyI
sticking up, but he knew that she would be ready to protect him if he needed71Please respect copyright.PENANAovEVJ7yFJd
it.
He opened the door, slowly, poking71Please respect copyright.PENANADInSrYwhcr
his head out to see the two bouncers standing there with arms folded. One of71Please respect copyright.PENANAwy9ZLDxR2M
them was carrying a long, wrapped package in his hands. “I still have a few71Please respect copyright.PENANAolcu9FGWVF
hours,” Vander said. “What can I do for you?”
“Ross sent word.” Right said.71Please respect copyright.PENANAfJFEpt3w4p
“Something came up, so the fight won’t be for two more days. Make sure you are71Please respect copyright.PENANA8xKof3SvjY
well rested.” The news was a shock. In the entire time Vander had been here,71Please respect copyright.PENANAky0UzSj7Si
not once had the boss pushed back a fight, especially not one he had been71Please respect copyright.PENANAxEuJm08MQ2
looking forward to for years. He couldn’t help but wonder if it had something71Please respect copyright.PENANAsoVcawr3DQ
to do with him.
“Your weapon was finished.” Left71Please respect copyright.PENANA3VW7NTSGiM
thrusted the package into Vander’s arms. “Not sure what you needed something71Please respect copyright.PENANA5nCdzlgtie
like this for, but just don’t break it. It was expensive.” Thanking the two of71Please respect copyright.PENANAETgcq0j25v
them, Vander ducked back into his room.
“What did you get?” Shea71Please respect copyright.PENANAWOID2qrsfr
jumped back onto the bed folding her paws underneath each other.
“A special sword from Kolmijr,”71Please respect copyright.PENANANCnqUbHesh
Vander tore off the packaging to show a scabbard sword. The sheath was ornate,71Please respect copyright.PENANAAanfhJH26G
made from wood that had been painted black with white along the edges. “The71Please respect copyright.PENANAjSiP6TMmw9
sword has a reverse blade, so I won’t hurt anyone if I come across them71Please respect copyright.PENANAij2rYbAroG
outside.”
“If someone attacks you, you71Please respect copyright.PENANALwI1pUuJGf
should strike them down, no questions asked.” Shea growled. “They blamed71Please respect copyright.PENANAVQj5nCTIk0
you for something you didn’t do, they deserve no mercy.”
“Unless it’s Leon, I don’t want to71Please respect copyright.PENANAeuyx10hUMQ
hurt them no matter your feelings on it.” Vander sighed. “They will be doing71Please respect copyright.PENANAvI0INcSPH3
their job, there is no reason to lose their lives for it.” He placed the sword71Please respect copyright.PENANA7Bet38WNjc
on the bed before cupping his companion’s face in his hands. “It’s no longer us71Please respect copyright.PENANA0yqGEUbgLO
against everyone else, Shea. We have friends we can count on.”
“Then where are they?” Vander71Please respect copyright.PENANAaUPDGkbGI1
didn’t have an answer for that. He kissed the top of her head before heading71Please respect copyright.PENANAPvyUhvxRAX
towards the desk against the wall.
With everything that had been71Please respect copyright.PENANAo0VIAxMbaQ
going on, he hadn’t had time to look at the book Peyton had been willing to71Please respect copyright.PENANA9zu236UkIL
kill Malcolm to get his hands on. If this book was as important as everyone71Please respect copyright.PENANAXt7SKfG541
seemed to think, why had it stayed unknown within the royal library for so71Please respect copyright.PENANAhDEZOJGRqK
long? And why wait until now to get it? No matter how long he thought it over,71Please respect copyright.PENANARgolFhm8RK
he couldn’t get to an answer that made any sort of sense. Since he had the next71Please respect copyright.PENANAK8JjENaj7y
two nights off, now would be a good time to find out why.
He removed the book from the71Please respect copyright.PENANAl3eA4zh9kf
hidden drawer within the desk. Only two people knew it was there and with Shea71Please respect copyright.PENANANiMx5VIvbO
guarding the room, there was no way Ross would have come in there uninvited.71Please respect copyright.PENANAvU1RHaZuXf
Friend or not, that would have been a one-way trip to the undertaker.
The book itself seemed to be very71Please respect copyright.PENANAKJh5nYf8tL
old. The blackened leather was beginning to crack while some of the pages were71Please respect copyright.PENANARzafB3DLgB
stuck a dark brown from years of sitting on dusty bookshelves. It was rather71Please respect copyright.PENANAjCM9VLMZEB
innocuous, if someone hadn’t been looking for it, there was a huge chance that71Please respect copyright.PENANAuRFKFJrMtg
they never would have found it. Vander hesitated before opening it. This was71Please respect copyright.PENANA6MfZa9ZLYX
something Malcolm had been killed for; what mysteries would be hidden within?
The first thing he saw was a71Please respect copyright.PENANAwiUznp3jqM
folded piece of paper inside of the front cover. Confusingly it had his name on71Please respect copyright.PENANAXOcyXmTVBu
it with the former King’s handwriting on the front. Frowning, Vander carefully71Please respect copyright.PENANAQSp1jsIq09
removed the letter and unfolded it to read the contents:
Vander,
I71Please respect copyright.PENANA34oWFUHTRs
am writing this letter shortly before my son’s, and your friend’s, wedding. If71Please respect copyright.PENANA3jXSKnUmNk
you find this letter, then my life has been cut short and my plans have gone71Please respect copyright.PENANAtLFa7I4wwx
off the rails. Being the Ma’akti of Humjir has its challenges, but being able71Please respect copyright.PENANA6UYnhG3jhu
to see the future and doing nothing to change it tops the list. Just know you71Please respect copyright.PENANArBs5W0Jxg0
have everything you need to find those responsible for my death and bring them71Please respect copyright.PENANAYPjfFf5Jxh
to justice.
In71Please respect copyright.PENANAjMDguvlPhW
this book you will find some answers you need, but the rest you will need to71Please respect copyright.PENANArhqRbROd20
find on your own. I am sorry I couldn’t do more and I’m sorry that you must do71Please respect copyright.PENANAlhEUUkbZNb
this alone. He will listen to you; you just have to ask. Good luck kid, despite71Please respect copyright.PENANAKdjfgO11E9
the time we had together I wish we had more, but I know you will do everything71Please respect copyright.PENANALXUALqHQiY
you can to protect our home. You always have.
After71Please respect copyright.PENANAISpFnGnVRU
you read, see Humi. He alone knows that you are innocent, and he will help you.
Good71Please respect copyright.PENANATtJZREoNgM
luck!
-Malcolm
Tears71Please respect copyright.PENANAT8SlzR42lt
splashed down on the letter, but Vander quickly brushed them away. He knew he71Please respect copyright.PENANAcOcSqfQXQa
should be angry at Malcolm for not letting him know ahead of time, but he knew71Please respect copyright.PENANAenXe6tN70k
that if he had been told, he would have done everything in his power to keep71Please respect copyright.PENANAbEst3msqFQ
the king’s death from happening. That didn’t mean he had to like it, however.71Please respect copyright.PENANAX3wdKwfDin
And if Humi had known, that would have meant Malcolm trusted him enough with71Please respect copyright.PENANAUUrsRu72JJ
his secret, but did that mean Vander should trust him as well? There was only71Please respect copyright.PENANA7xych7DYUh
one way to find out, but he would have to wait a couple more hours until it was71Please respect copyright.PENANACpTiqwPUDC
dark. Until then, he would read.
He71Please respect copyright.PENANAVPBJRwdyLf
skipped past the creation myth of the first couple of chapters. Everyone in71Please respect copyright.PENANAWgH6qV4QTp
Eluvia knew about it, they were taught when they were small about the Gods that71Please respect copyright.PENANAx9IqTA19G0
ruled their lives. Most of them anyway. He wanted to know more about Unna, the71Please respect copyright.PENANA8dXioXRwgC
one who had changed the course of his life. He wanted to know about the demon,71Please respect copyright.PENANAprLmizJlTp
what he could do to keep it from taking control.
Tragically71Please respect copyright.PENANAcFCd0HGJ56
there wasn’t much in her section. He shouldn’t have been so disappointed, he71Please respect copyright.PENANAw2IENB6UIE
knew that, but it still hurt. Other than Aubum, Unna was the most secretive of71Please respect copyright.PENANAod2hVJAwFW
the Gods, preferring to toy with humanity and their emotions. There was no way71Please respect copyright.PENANARgFFr5c0cV
that she would spill her secrets on anyone who would ask and most of those she71Please respect copyright.PENANAY6GM19pROZ
chose to take her power didn’t live long anyway, but it was still worth71Please respect copyright.PENANATOJbcx9bMP
remembering what was there in case he needed it.
Unna’s gifts are not for the faint of heart. She71Please respect copyright.PENANAXzWNFk3Tgw
gives her Ma’akti the power of the animals they bond with the strength of the71Please respect copyright.PENANAPPpW9lKkiR
bear, senses of the wolf, or sight of the hawk, but it doesn’t come without71Please respect copyright.PENANA1LJyLSUElS
cost. In each of her Ma’akti lives a more animalistic version of themselves, a71Please respect copyright.PENANAIrSGdjJmjO
demon as many called it. They embody what the person would be if they didn’t71Please respect copyright.PENANAZGjM5LGhJ7
have morality and lived by the laws of the wild. Many can resist the urges of71Please respect copyright.PENANA20C6oTAFaz
their demon for years or even decades, but after awhile the walls in their mind71Please respect copyright.PENANA2Xl3d2H49G
crack under the pressure. They go into a trace then kill without question. Many71Please respect copyright.PENANA2O88yyaSSJ
are killed once people know what they have done and have many centuries, people71Please respect copyright.PENANAiBDJEDMuxj
preemptively killed those chosen as soon as they found out causing many to hide71Please respect copyright.PENANAVsxZ7dGBmx
their true nature until the end comes.
It is difficult to explain why these things71Please respect copyright.PENANAzfKT7uOQzt
happen, why some can hold out longer than others. Many believe that it is based71Please respect copyright.PENANASTJWV3PTmq
on Unna’s will. If she likes you, she makes it easier to resist. If she71Please respect copyright.PENANAqkJ4X8OnyZ
doesn’t, well, you wind up her dinner. Some believe that will is the driving71Please respect copyright.PENANA25Zl7Fepta
force behind resisting the urges, but I’m not sure if that is the case. It will71Please respect copyright.PENANAQQweHqwIx0
be a true testament for someone to live more than two decades after being71Please respect copyright.PENANAE7lR3WrkEx
chosen. As of now that hasn’t happened, but I am hoping at some point it will.71Please respect copyright.PENANACqhyqCT2mA
These chosen can be a force for good in protecting us if Darkness ever makes71Please respect copyright.PENANAUeWDveCbnl
her way back into our world.
Something of interest I have discovered after71Please respect copyright.PENANAIt1dbdagB3
years of research. Each of Unna’s Ma’akti has something called a mate. Unlike71Please respect copyright.PENANAHCIR225SG1
today’s term where someone’s mate is the person they spend their life with and71Please respect copyright.PENANAYpnpU9fpUJ
raise a family together, an Unna’s chosen’s mate is something a little more71Please respect copyright.PENANAA1ARc4oBe1
primal. It tethers them to humanity, soothing the demon enough for them to get71Please respect copyright.PENANA4kleeBzix1
a handle on who they are and who they want to be. It’s even stronger when their71Please respect copyright.PENANALjikGj05qE
“mate” is another Ma’akti. They can feel an instant attraction to one another,71Please respect copyright.PENANA1Yq9UxILcM
as if fate was guiding them. It’s only happened once before, if it can be71Please respect copyright.PENANAxpPnMPjpXZ
believed. The only one in myth was Ritoru, Unna’s own mate. A large white wolf71Please respect copyright.PENANA1wQ2pcQjYr
capable of killing anyone who dared messed with her. Quite a match.
Vander71Please respect copyright.PENANAfFpWrfSxYD
leaned back into the chair after rereading that part several times. The writer71Please respect copyright.PENANAcfGWenlBz7
said it had only happened once, if mythology could be believed, but if that was71Please respect copyright.PENANAqHB1mVfTw7
true, how did Eliza know about it? Were things taught differently in Bricen71Please respect copyright.PENANAtz9kEC3y51
than they were here? But at least now he had his answer. The creature71Please respect copyright.PENANARD6g2uc8qr
whispering in his ear was his more animalistic side, the one that just wants to71Please respect copyright.PENANAvn7bFKEifv
kill and survive. He would have to fight with everything he had to keep it at71Please respect copyright.PENANAZhWm4u72Dm
bay, but what would happen if he was forced to give in? It was something he71Please respect copyright.PENANAR2LLQO5qPH
really didn’t want to think about. Shea must have sensed his distress because71Please respect copyright.PENANAJcgRnoxlN9
she walked over to him placing her head on his leg. He rubbed the top of her71Please respect copyright.PENANAIy5SN95Kie
head deep in thought. Perhaps Humi would have the answers he needed.
“Do71Please respect copyright.PENANA1PwdReOs2m
you fancy a stroll?” He looked down at Shea.
“Do71Please respect copyright.PENANAXjWaAo65Km
you mean it?” Her71Please respect copyright.PENANAqgfYG7mM5q
tail was wagging as she looked up at him. The only time she went out was to use71Please respect copyright.PENANApwnpv5t1sp
the bathroom, other than that she was forced to be in this room. Someone like71Please respect copyright.PENANAZEug49fxMQ
her should be stuck behind the walls of some warehouse, she should be free to71Please respect copyright.PENANApXTbRYuHPR
explore the streets. Since it was late enough and people were inside, he71Please respect copyright.PENANAJBWeuBBnyV
figured why not allow her some freedom?
“I71Please respect copyright.PENANAuprR1xdKs4
do.” He nodded. He stood up from the desk, making sure to take the black book71Please respect copyright.PENANAHy0bHW8Ex0
with him when he got changed. Regardless of this place being under Ross’71Please respect copyright.PENANAnMxOVFmYjv
protection, he didn’t trust the man not to go through his belongings once he71Please respect copyright.PENANAnPSpjjTn7f
and Shea were gone. He would do whatever he could to get one over on anyone he71Please respect copyright.PENANASH8hVenx3E
thought he could use, no matter their position.
Vander71Please respect copyright.PENANAx3i54nXCdM
got dressed in his outfit he had used to cut down the Serpents the other night.71Please respect copyright.PENANAhueG3oHHIP
He had been up late cleaning all the blood of it then allowing it to dry. He71Please respect copyright.PENANAWiSz4Ly9Ou
didn’t want anyone to question him because it would be bad for all involved. He71Please respect copyright.PENANAoDLsgFbHep
reapplied some of the dye to his hair before strapping his sword onto his71Please respect copyright.PENANAW03FC1Y7In
baldric. The two of them walked over to the window that overlooked an alley. He71Please respect copyright.PENANA1BThXGlaFZ
pushed his hood up to cover his face then jumped, landing heavily on the71Please respect copyright.PENANArB8tD6yNiZ
cobblestone road. Shea landed lightly behind him.
The71Please respect copyright.PENANAnUrKpD1RWA
Orange Fox was booming tonight. Patrons were disappointed that a fight wasn’t71Please respect copyright.PENANAzGeVIB3QRV
happening so they were drowning their sorrows in booze, gambling, and it was71Please respect copyright.PENANAomJNjejN2M
likely that more than a few of Ross’ girls would get a hefty payday once71Please respect copyright.PENANAH0MguP2xXi
tonight was done. Right and Left were guarding the door dealing with people71Please respect copyright.PENANAjGaBYRJjCm
wanting to get in, so they weren’t paying attention to the alley. Giving an71Please respect copyright.PENANAhKvSHSbo9R
all-clear signal, Vander moved out from the shadows.
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For71Please respect copyright.PENANA9sZEny3wIN
tonight he said goodnight to the Southern District. Hopefully by the time he71Please respect copyright.PENANAuwAlGCZJ7K
came back he would find the answers he needed. If not, then he just might be71Please respect copyright.PENANA70a4l7Xugt
doomed.